The State Bank of India on Thursday launched a special personal loan scheme for Agniveers in the Indian Army on the occasion of the 79th Independence Day.

A study of population-specific responses to fermented food shows that the health effect of the bioactive peptides they contain, differ across populations and can personalise nutrition for India's diverse population, the government said on Thursday.

A recent study conducted by Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST), Guwahati, an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST) emphasises the health benefits of traditional fermented foods.

They showed that the bioactive peptides (BAPs) or short protein fragments consisting of 2 to 20 amino acids that they contain can regulate blood pressure, blood sugar, immunity and inflammation.

The study, published in Food Chemistry and led by Professor Ashis K. Mukherjee, corresponding author and Director IASST – along with Dr Maloyjo Joyraj Bhattacharjee, Dr Asis Bala, and Dr. Mojibr Khan -- showed that foods such as yogurt, idli, miso, natto, kimchi and fermented fish contain high levels of these peptides.

At least 23 dead bodies were recovered, while 75 others were injured in a massive cloudburst which hit Chositi village of Padder Sub-division of Kishtwar on Thursday.

An official said that the injured are being shifted to the hospital, while helicopters have been pressed into service to evacuate the injured.

“A massive joint rescue operation is going on in the area,” the official said.

MoS (PMO) Jitendra Singh confirmed that the cloudburst hit Chositi, adding that the rescue operation has already been started.

India's merchandise exports registered a 7.29 per cent increase to $37.24 billion in July this year, compared with the corresponding figure of $34.71 billion in the same month last year, according to official data released on Thursday.

"Despite an uncertain global policy environment, India's services and merchandise exports in July and in FY26 so far have grown substantially, and are much higher than the global exports growth," Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said.

"Major drivers of goods exports in July were engineering goods, electronics goods, drugs and pharma, organic and inorganic chemicals, gems and jewellery,” he pointed out.

The surge in goods exports is also due to stepped-up shipments ahead of the higher US tariffs that will kick in from later in August.

The third edition of the International League T20 Development Tournament will begin on August 24 here at the ICC Academy Oval 1. The 18-match tournament will feature six teams and will be conducted in a single-league, round-robin format.

In a bid to "boost voter confidence", the Supreme Court, in an interim order passed on Thursday, directed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to upload district-wise data of about 65 lakh electors in poll-bound Bihar whose names were omitted in the draft electoral rolls following the initial phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi ordered that the details of these electors, whose enumeration forms were not submitted, should be uploaded on the official websites by Tuesday (August 19), along with the reasons such as death, permanent migration, duplication, or being untraceable.

The information uploaded on the websites of the District Electoral Officers and the Chief Electoral Officer of Bihar should be searchable using EPIC (Electors Photo Identity Card) numbers, added the Justice Surya Kant-led Bench.

A man in Jharkhand's Jamshedpur allegedly killed his wife over suspicion of an illicit relationship, before committing suicide by coming under a train, officials said on Thursday.

Actress Zareen Khan, who is known for ‘Veer’, ‘Housefull 2’, ‘Hate Story 3’ and others, has spoken up on the concept of micro-dramas, and how they mark a definitive moment in the content industry.

After making a memorable mark in Bollywood and carving a niche for herself with a string of notable performances, Zareen Khan is now stepping into a brand-new storytelling space, the world of microdramas. Her latest project, ‘Phir Se Restart’ marks her foray into this rapidly growing format

Sharing her excitement about the format and the story she's exploring for the first time, the actress said, “Microdramas are such a fresh concept that’s taking over the content scene right now. I’m thrilled to be part of this project because it’s not just a good story, it’s one that resonates”.

India’s left-handed batter Tilak Varma said his short spell of playing county cricket for Hampshire has given him lessons he will ‘carry for life’.